MEMORANDUM

DISCUSSION:

The purpose of this memo is to explain the levels of compliance reviews for the Family Support Division (FSD). It is the policy of the FSD to fully cooperate with agencies charged with oversight of FSD programs.

All FSD programs are subject to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) A-133 audits. The A-133 audit is also called a single audit. In Missouri, the State Auditor’s Office performs these audits on behalf of the federal agencies that provide funds for the programs such as the Department of Health and Human Services (DHSS) Administration for Children and Families (ACF) for Temporary Assistance, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for MO HealthNet or the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) for Food Stamps.

These are rigorous audits to determine if the FSD is complying with federal requirements. An important part of the audit is the auditors’ review of case records and eligibility determinations made by field staff. If the auditors find errors in eligibility determinations or other issues with other area of the program administration that result in questioned costs, the FSD has to repay the federal funds.

The audits are performed no less than every three years and may be performed annually when there are identified areas of concern. Temporary Assistance, Child Care and MO HealthNet have yearly audits because of recurring issues. FNS, ACF, and CMS conduct additional program reviews and monitoring visits.

Within the FSD, the unit that monitors program performance is the Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QC) unit which is part of the Compliance Review Unit. They are responsible for reviewing Food Stamp case records for compliance with FNS regulations and reporting the error rate to the FNS. The QC unit also reviews MO HealthNet cases for Payment Error Rate Measurement (PERM). If the QC reported error rate exceeds the federal standard, the FSD has to repay federal funds.

All of these compliance reviews may result in the FSD developing corrective action plans to address findings, or may result in multi-million dollar repayments to the federal government.

Audit reviews are time sensitive. Failure to provide a case file when requested will result in an audit finding or a quality control error. Because these reviews may result in a large financial penalty; when a case record is requested for an audit, it is imperative that field staff comply with the requests by the due date.

NECESSARY ACTION:

• Review this memorandum with appropriate staff.
• Respond to all case file requests promptly.

AC/jo